They are sour, spicy and savory all at once. Bite-sized pieces of lime (skin and all) are fermented and aged for several weeks or months (these aged for almost two months over the winter). They’re easy to make and versatile to cook with; you can eat them on their own or use them as a condiment. I’ve loved them added to soup or mixed with yogurt to cut their intensity.

I’ve adapted this recipe from my friend, Tigress. She no longer updates her wonderful blog but continues to inspire me through her previous posts; I adore her site and miss her updates. Tigress has spent a lot of time in India and is one of my go-to resources for Indian-inspired recipes.

If you’ve eaten shawarma, you’re likely familiar with the bright purple pickles that are added to your meal. Pickled turnip makes a great addition to a savory sandwich and adds a sour and slightly spicy accent to your meal. It’s an exceptional match for the savory flavor of beans (including hummus) and is absolutely easy to make!

The bright color traditionally comes from the addition of beets (or beet juice) to the ferment. Like many mass-produced products you’ll find that many modern versions are artificially dyed to obtain the color. Since these are so easy to make (and a great way to learn how to ferment), why not skip the pre-made stuff and make your own?

This post shows just how easy it is to preserve food; the recipe used less than a cup of carrots and green onions but could be scaled up or down as you’d like. I’m back in cooking classes with my Father (we’re studying knife skills this month) and that means two things:

I’m going to learn some new things (which always excites me)

I will gain access to food I don’t normally buy; classes are rarely based on season or locality and I often take extra ingredients home to prevent them from being thrown out.

As part of our training I was practicing cutting carrots and green onions. After successfully transforming them into thin strips (Julienne), I packed them to take home and needed a plan. I experimented with fermenting the two ingredients together and was quite surprised at the results! [Read more...]

Fermented Carrots? Of course! They are a sweet and sour pickle that’s super crunchy and are a fantastic way to learn how to ferment. This recipe takes minutes (or less to prepare) and will last in your fridge for a year or more (but we can eat a quart/ liter in a week!)

It is ironic that I had difficulty choosing a post for this month’s theme of the Canadian Food Experience. The theme is Preserving : Our Canadian Food Tradition. Given that we write a lot about preserving, this would look like a topic that should be an easy post for us!

Pineapple salsa is amazing; fermenting it is even better! If you haven’t fermented before, don’t fret – this is as easy as it comes!

It’s very rare that we feature a recipe with a main ingredient that isn’t locally sourced. I’m not opposed to buying imported food (we cook with lemons, limes, olive oil and I drink coffee); we’re just very selective in choosing items from far away.

We often get asked how to make pickles. Especially the kind of pickles you can buy in a deli or like your Granny used to make. The fermented(often thought of as ‘kosher’) kind. To make matters worse, people often want to know how to make pickles when cucumbers are in season and their houses are incredibly warm. If that’s the case with you, look no further!

It’s too hot to make salad. It’s almost too hot to make ice. I may curl up into the oven to cool down. But I’m not cooking.

This is why it’s an ideal time to make pickles. Fermented pickles to be exact. And, if you have a jar that’s big enough, you can make 2 liters (i.e. quarts) in less than 2 minutes of work. And you don’t even have to turn the stove.

I’ve meant to do this experiment for a few years and I’m glad I finally got around to making this hot sauce with fermented dried peppers. Any dried peppers would do but I specifically chose Morita peppers because they are smoke-dried. Known as the poor-mans chipotle, Morita’s are simply smoke-dried red jalapeno. If you don’t have access to them, don’t fret – any dried pepper will work in the fantastically easy recipe.

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Joel’s TEDxToronto Speech

Joel had the pleasure of speaking at TEDxToronto in 2013. He spoke about his passion for preserving, shared his resistance to our current food system and shares the top 5 reasons why people don't preserve - and how they're a myth!